Officer Charged With Three Counts Of Murder For DUI Crash

A charge of DUI murder is a serious charge and can affect a person’s life in many ways. The charge carries a minimum of 15 years to life in state prison. It will also give a person felony status, which can restrict a person’s rights such as the right to vote. It will also count as a strike under California’s three strikes laws. Depending on how many people are affected, these penalties can become even more severe. Fox 40 reports on a Los Angeles Police officer who is charged with three counts of murder and DUI for an accident he had while off duty.

At 7 p.m. on September 26, 2017, LAPD officer Edgar Verduzco, 27, sent out an Instagram warning people against drinking and driving. It pictured a car driving along a bar counter among glasses of beer, complete with an animated driver.

Just over three hours later, Verduzco crashed into two vehicles. He was speeding at the time and sent one of those vehicles into a center divider where it burst into flames. The three occupants of that car did not survive.

Verduzco hit a second car afterward. The occupants of the second car only suffered minor injuries.

At the time of the accident, Verduzco was arrested but was later released due to insufficient grounds to file the charges.

That has changed, however, as on Friday, the district attorney announced the arrest of Verduzco. He is facing charges of three counts of murder and vehicular manslaughter, DUI as well as DUI causing injury.

The Los Angeles Police department reported that Verduzco has been relieved of duty.